Russia Fires Latest Salvo In War Against McDonald's

McDonald's MCD restaurants at four locations in Russia were closed Wednesday by health authorities for sanitary code violations.

McDonald's, which operates about 430 restaurants in Russia, says it will determine steps necessary to reopen the locations as soon as possible.

The action comes on the heels of an announcement Monday by Russian food regulator Rosselkhoznadzor that McDonald's may be banned from producing a range of burgers and dairy products in Russia.

The agency cited suspicion that McDonald's cheese suppliers add antibiotics to their produce, and that menu information regarding nutrition is inaccurate.

In April, McDonald's closed four locations in Crimea, leading to deputy speaker of the Russian parliament, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, calling for a boycott to drive the company out of the country, Bloomberg reported.

Wendy's WEN said last month it would close its eight locations in Russia after a change in ownership of the company's franchises there called Wenrus. Wendy's said the move had "nothing to do with politics."

For McDonald's, Europe including Russia accounted for $11.3 billion of the company's 2013 sales; North America accounted for $8.85 million of total sales of $28.1 billion.

McDonald's traded recently at $94.20, down 0.3 percent.

Posted In: NewsEventsGlobalHotIntraday Update
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